Youtube announced that it "bans the promotion of gambling-related tokens and NFTs", sparking protests from crypto influencers: Are they going to change careers?

YouTube’s expanded ban on gambling content caused panic in Web3. Officials clarified that the regulations only target casino-oriented, and NFT and game videos can still be listed.
(Preliminary information: Youtube has not banned profit-making of AI videos. The official clarification: the focus is on "originality and differentiation" to combat AI junk content)
(Background supplement: In addition to Bitcoin, Taiwanese YouTubers show you what "real life in El Salvador" looks like?)

Contents of this article

YouTube's sentence "expanding the ban on online gambling content" instantly ignited the global Web3 on November 6 Uneasiness with gaming circles. NFT collectors to crypto influencers are worried that the video will be labeled as gambling, and the profit rights will be frozen, or even forced to be removed from the shelves. There are widespread rumors in the market that "NFT content is dying."

The policy impact spread immediately

YouTube announced that starting from November 17, it will prohibit creators from directing viewers to external websites that provide "additional items of monetary value", including casino-increased game skins, costumes or NFTs. As soon as the news came out, the Silicon Valley studio group and the Taiwan Discord channel began to compare their own content. For a while, "Which video will be shot" became a hot topic. The community is worried that the prices of NFTs and tokens that can be bought and sold in blockchain games fluctuate violently. If they are deemed to be similar in nature to gambling, they may no longer be able to be monetized through the platform.

Official quick clarification

In the face of external doubts, YouTube explained that the new regulations "only apply to casino sponsorship and betting-oriented content" and will not affect videos that simply show game mechanics or comment on the value of NFTs. The spokesperson emphasized:

"Videos showing game skins, styles, or general discussion of NFTs are not affected by this update."

The official also added that if the video only mentions legal gambling websites certified by Google, most of them will adopt age restrictions rather than comprehensive removal. Anonymous creator Iceyyy also pointed out: "This amendment is more like isolating real gambling sponsorship, and regular encrypted content is safe."

Gray area tests implementation

Even so, implementation details remain variable. How to define "gambling behavior" remains the key. Taking the unboxing of "Absolute Force 2" as an example, there is only one step between players paying for a box draw and the casino's "betting for prizes". It remains to be seen whether the AI review can accurately distinguish. In order to reduce risks, content creators have recently adopted three major strategies:

• Mark the nature of the content: clearly state in the title that it is game mechanism research, and add a "not investment advice" statement.
• Choose cooperation carefully: Refuse any advertisements or placements that focus on digital asset gambling to avoid associations.
• Proactively add age thresholds: Customize restrictions in advance for clips that may be misjudged by the system to gain review flexibility.

Regulatory context and long-term impact

Zooming into the political and economic level, this adjustment is also regarded as YouTube’s first statement in the atmosphere of the Trump administration’s emphasis on “consumer and minor protection.” As the regulatory contours of crypto-assets become clearer, platforms setting boundaries in advance will help facilitate future dialogue with authorities. For developers, regulatory pressure forces them to avoid gambling mechanisms when designing economic models, which may instead promote Web3 games to move towards a more transparent and compliant profit model.

On the whole, YouTube’s new policy is not a complete blockade of encrypted content, but a declaration of war on gambling sponsorship. In the short term, creators need to invest extra time in self-review; in the long term, it is expected to eliminate low-quality advertisements and allow films that truly focus on technology, art, and gameplay to remain on the stage. Whether YouTube can balance user protection and encourage innovation will determine the next round of partnership between YouTube and the Web3 community.